An Age of Happiness
by CarnelianFox
Summary: Whisper, having spent 190 years sealed away, not only has to address the feeling of coming into the modern age, but also the love he had never expected to enter his life. Jibanyan makes a discovery about himself, too, and turns to Nate for the confidence to address this self-discovery.


**I don't own Yo-Kai Watch and this story is purely for entertainment and how I can play with the differences between now and 190 years ago when Whisper was first sealed away.**

"I'll see you in an hour!" Whisper loudly and abruptly exclaimed to Nate and Jibanyan, wearing a bowler hat and a trench coat, preparing to venture out into the evening.

"Umm… Okay?" came Nate's reply, simple and confused.

"Why do you look like you're about to go make a dirty deal in an alley downtown?" Jibanyan inquired as he pulled a Choco-bar from his sash.

"Traaaaaaaade secret!" Whisper enthusiastically replied, beaming at Jibanyan. The cat Yo-Kai blinked twice, and then shrugged as he tore open the wrapper to his beloved chocolate. With a grin of unbridled confidence adorning his face, Whisper phased through Nate's window to the outside, where he let the mask slip and let out a sigh of relief. He knew that if he hadn't kept up a façade of enthusiasm, he would have held an expression of fear and embarrassment.

Life in the modern day was so different from his original time. Whisper had been amazed by the progress the world had made in the 190 years since he was sealed within the Crank-a-Kai. It hadn't been the technology that was infinitely more advanced either. Trends and social interaction were completely different. Entertainment had broadened in development and the people were more open with each other. Even his own Yo-Kai Pad was a modern marvel to him. If he wanted to, instead of trying to make a backdoor deal with a noble, he could surf the net and do something like purchase tickets to a Next HarMEOWny concert.

His first stop was at the local Everymart, frequented by none other than Hungramps. The elderly Yo-Kai sat on the roof of the building, munching away on a rice ball. He looked up at Whisper's descending form and waved, greeting, "Whisper, so you decided to come after all."

"Thank you for meeting me out here, Hungramps," Whisper thanked the gluttonous spirit. "I was hoping you would be able to educate me on something."

"Ho? I thought that was more your speed. What do you care to know?" Hungramps asked as he held out the chip bag to Whisper, who reached into the bag and pulled a chip out.

"When you were alive and times were changing, did you ever feel like something was missing? Perhaps that you were feeling left behind?" Whisper inquired thoughtfully.

"Hmm…well, I suppose that is one way to put it. Time marches on, ever young, and no soul is built that way. Though if that were the case, I never would have had my daughter or my granddaughter in my life. If that's the trade-off for the times leaving me behind, I lived a full life, and my afterlife is just as fulfilling," Hungramps replied. "Ask a deep question, and you get a deep answer. Why do you ask, anyways?"

"I've been…emotional lately. Sometimes, it feels like it's just too obvious that I came from another era completely. I didn't even bear witness to the industrial revolution, and here we are in the digital age. I don't even know if I'm even allowed to say much beyond my duties as a butler," Whisper explained. "'Your duty comes first', I tell myself."

"…You have a crush on someone, don't you?" Hungramps asked.

"Aaah! What?! M-me? W-what are you talking about?" Whisper defensively questioned, flustered and displaying a lack of composure.

"…There's a lot more pressure on the youth today than when I was a boy. However, I think there're also more opportunities for people to be happy. They just need the time to be and the wit to stop looking," Hungramps advised.

Whisper calmed down from his hysteria enough to take in those words, though the blush remained. "It's not weird?"

"Whisper, we're Yo-Kai living in the modern age. There's nothing to be afraid of," Hungramps replied. "It might be weird to you, but you have your own needs and desires that you've left unaddressed. I just think you're too in the mindset for the time you used to live in than for the moment you're living in now. I hear mindfulness is trendy and I'm dead, so do with that what you will."

"Mindfulness… Hey, is the candy store still open?"

"You might just make it if you hurry."

With that, Whisper zoomed off through the air, yelling, "Thank yooooooou!" as he made his way toward Blossom Heights, but not before making a couple stops along the way.

Meanwhile, Jibanyan was gazing listlessly out the window that Whisper had phased through earlier as Nate played a videogame on his bed. The red feline Yo-Kai spoke up, breaking the silence, and asked, "Hey, Nyate, Whisper's kind of charming in his own dorky way, you knyow?"

"What, do you have a crush on him?" Nate asked absently.

"M-maybe?" Jibanyan replied, suddenly flustered. "H-he may not be super cute like the girls in Next HarMEOWny, but he's…a different kind of cute. He's got spirit!"

Nate closed his DS, putting it into sleep mode, and turned to Jibanyan. He told him, "You can tell me what's on your mind, you know."

"I've been thinking a lot and, um…I think I'm bi, and I think I like Whisper," Jibanyan confessed sheepishly.

Nate smiled, "That's awesome!"

"You think so?" Jibanyan asked, caught off guard.

"Yeah. Honestly, I don't know all that much about this sort of thing, but I think you two can really make each other happy. Besides, without the two of you, life would be so boring and I'm sick of ordinary. The least you two deserve is some happiness," Nate replied nonchalantly, flashing Jibanyan a comforting smile. "You're a cool cat."

"And I like it like that!" Jibanyan replied with newfound confidence. "I'm gonna do what you can't do for Katie and tell him how I feel!"

"Hey!" Nate exclaimed in protest as Jibanyan ran to the door. Before he could exit, however, an exhausted looking Whisper threw the door open. In the crook of Whisper's elbow was a large bouquet of roses coupled with an assortment of Choco-bars, fanzines and, to top it all off, a pair of tickets to a Next HarMEOWny concert.

Jibanyan and Whisper gazed into each other's eyes, blushing and beaming at one another. Whisper held out the bundle of gifts to Jibanyan, who silently accepted them and smelled the roses.

"You guys want some alone time?" Nate asked, smirking.

"No, I…I think we're fine, Nyate. Whisper, did you really get all this for me?" Jibanyan asked, wide-eyed at the mini collection of his favorite things.

"Of course! You see…I've been around a while, but I've never known a friend like you, and there's something I've been meaning to run by you," Whisper began, clearing his throat a bit as he spoke. "Would you do me the honor of letting me serve you, not as a butler, but as a partner?"

"Are you asking me to be your boyfriend?" Jibanyan asked.

"Yeah, I am," Whisper chuckled sheepishly.

"It's something I'm willing to try," Jibanyan replied, causing Whisper's face to light up. Jibanyan dropped his gifts on the floor as he pounced onto Whisper, the two embracing each other tightly. "Anyone who'd go out of their way to even get concert tickets for me is someone I have to hold onto."

"Speaking of which, how did you pay for all this?" Nate asked, getting off his bed to examine the merchandise.

"Umm…" Whisper stuttered nervously, beginning to sweat.

"Whisper, what did you do?" Nate questioned suspiciously.

"Well, you know how we acquired some valuable items over and whatnot while getting stronger and meeting more Yo-Kai? Well, I may have sold them early and stashed the money for a big romantic gesture," Whisper admitted and let out a hearty laugh. "All's fair in love and war!"

"You've got that right…" Nate agreed with fiery eyes as he folded a sheet of paper from his desk into a fan. "So that's why you left with a trench coat."

"N-now, Nate, I know this was behind your back, but it was all for a good cause," Whisper assured.

"That money isn't just yours!" Nate exclaimed as he began to chase Whisper, who was still holding Jibanyan, around the room.

Jibanyan found it in himself to nuzzle Whisper and purr in the chase, internally swooning at Whisper's romantic gesture. He and Whisper could finally hold each other in a new light, so all was right in the grand scheme of things.

_**The End…**_

…_**and a new beginning.**_


End file.
